Manipur’s middle class is angry

The last straw was the disillusionment that came about on account of the bankruptcy of the administration. Alienation is writ large. In the ’90s, it manifested itself when a societal boycott compelled Kiran Bedi, then IG, Police, to withdraw her ward from the medical college. The alienation has only grown. Both the home minister and prime minister have visited the valley but the hefty package of several crores offered by the Centre is no remedy.

Unless timely steps are taken, most of the money may end up in the pockets of those very forces who are fanning the fire of unrest. The average Manipuri, Metei or non-Metei, is honest and simple to a fault. Living in the idyllic surroundings of the pokher (pond) and the fertile valley keep them carefree. New Delhi, which administered it as a Union Territory, used the Manipur posting either as a means to punish or promote. In either case, the officers were counting time for transfer. This left the field open for those who could corner funds. In the course of time, structures of swindling government money were consolidated. Consequently, there are only paper projects for road-building, construction of school premises, health centres, and so on. Since the funds do not lapse at the end of each financial year, cost escalations are cleverly done. The audit report by the comptroller and auditor-general routinely points to these glaring irregularities.

Lately, with the coming of the ISI into the picture, the role of the army has increased and so has the public outcry against army personnel abusing local women. It is a vicious circle. The middle class has always been an opinion builder. There are a number of honest and right-thinking people in the state to whom society looks for deliverance. It is not without reason that this class finds fault with the present dispensation.

The writer taught at Manipur University, Imphal